Talent Management Strategies In Marks And Spencer

Lawler states that in the operation of an organization centred on human capital, nothing is more important to the formulation of a business strategy and its implementation than the talent and organizational effectiveness. Talent management strategies have become a basic part of the organizational structure, and this brings into question just how effective these strategies are in individual organizations. Human resource planning is ‘the process of analyzing an organizations need for employees and evaluating how this can be met from the internal and external labour markets (Dictionary of Human Resource Management 2001). The reasons for talent management and potential sourcing have been reviewed in this report, in an attempt to understand the need for the implementation of the strategies behind it. Talent management and people resourcing process form the basis for the analysis of the effectiveness of the strategy. Recommendations for change based on the current weaknesses of the strategies have been given in a bid to improve the effectiveness of talent management and people sourcing in Marks and Spencer (M&S).

2.0) Introduction

British retailer M&S, a privately owned commercial company, is one of the largest clothing retailers in the United Kingdom with a 703 stores across the UK and another 390 across Europe, Middle East and Asia. Their business however does not only cover clothing but also home products and quality food (M&S 2012). In November 2010 M&S announce their three year plan to redefine M&S as a truly global chain by expanding into more countries. Of which great progress has been achieved in the first two years. Their main priority has and will always be the UK market which they choose to develop by building their brand and stores and providing improved shopping experience for their clients (M&S 2012). To do so they need the investment of the human factor. M&S are constantly faced with the challenge of severe competition which can lead to high turnovers within an organization if not handled well. Their main competitor amongst others is BHS; keeping in mind that they are first and foremost a clothing retailer. The immense focus on CSR practices has also brought about the need for organizations to tread cautiously both internally and externally. M&S has not been left behind in talent management as they employ the strategies for tapping potential and exploiting the abilities of their employees. The strategy does not become employable after employment; rather, it begins right at the hiring process.

M&S in early 2011 redefined its strategies due to immense competition in the industry, as being a customer oriented organization. And as such strategies and policies had to be put in place within the organisation to achieve this. For organisations to achieve their goals it is important that the people behind it are all in line with the vision of the company. “The customer is king”. Customer service and satisfaction having been identified as the core of M&S’s business strategy, it became relevant that they needed the right people for the job. Their change in strategy in 2011 is further discussed in 4.1.

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3.0) Talent Management and Potential Resourcing

Due to immense competition, the firms that are likely to succeed are those with the right people and strategies behind them. Bradwell and Claydon (2010) identified three ways that organizations can satisfy their demands for labour. I.e. increase external sourcing, increase internal sourcing or cut demands. M&S’s goals and competition in labour as in this area has led to the new and interloped concepts of potential resourcing, recruiting and talent management. The new concept focuses on the effectiveness of all the personnel involving processes, aiming to close the gaps that may lead to under productiveness in an organization.

M&S during their redefinition, identified that they had two main problems with their present recruitment process; it was expensive and inefficient and secondly they needed to improve the quality of staff hired (SHL 2011). These were having an impact on their competitive advantage. M&S’s Philosophy is that individuals simply posses qualities or talents which cannot be taught or passed on to others (SHL 2011). These traits include their thinking, character, behaviours and feelings, personal motivation etc. that go a long way to giving the company an advantage.

Due to these realisations, M&S made efforts to improve their processes by trying to better identify and recruit the right people for the right jobs and making efforts to develop their talents and maintain them as assets.

4.0) HR Strategy

The aim of talent management is predicting the need for human capital and devising a plan to meet it (Cappelli, 2008). Armstrong (2010) states that people resourcing is a process that requires implementation in various steps, it cannot be implemented all at once, as this would mean lack of chance for the evaluation and analysis of each step. According to Armstrong, the process begins with the formulation of strategy where the human labour required is identified, and formulates the kind of people that the firm requires. The prediction of human resource needed in future is vital (Armstrong 2006, pp. 368). Talent audit in many organizations are first conducted internally to identify the retention areas, improvement areas and the areas that need replacement. When conducted in a formal and organized manner, the audit is able to identify the areas that should need attraction of external talent (Hordes & Alexander 2003, pp. 175). The formal audit can however be a disadvantage as it prompts some of the employees to work in a more dedicated manner, portraying a wrong picture, especially if the audit is conducted within a short time span.

4.1) Resourcing

Early 2011, M&S identified the problem of time wastage on the large number of interviews with low hiring rates and poor selection of people in their resourcing stages (SHL 2011). There was the need to device a way of sifting applicants for interviews and assessments, which they hoped would help save time, increase hiring rates and improve calibre of hired people early in the process.

M&S sought the services of SHL to develop this sifting tool, which is till date used for that purpose. They developed the “Talent Screener” which comprised of a number of questions based on job scenarios and questions to assess their character and behaviour (SHL 2011). Applicants are therefore required to answer these questions online (As well as submit qualifications) or over the telephone. Based on their performances of this pre-screening, they are then invited for an interview. This was to ensure that not only are costs cut but also assessments of candidates are consistent, fair and more thorough.

The key issue or problem with this strategy was that there was no guarantee of legitimacy of information given by candidates online, which might give the organization the wrong picture regarding the calibre of people being invited for interviews. Research conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management shows that 50 percent of all resumes and applications contain false information (Tandem HR 2010). In order to provide information verification and background checks for employers to ensure security, professional organisations like Automatic Data Processing. Inc. can be used.

4.2) Recruitment and Selection

Successful candidates are then invited to a branch of the store for an interview and assessment. These include individual or group interviews and assessments to help determine a candidate’s qualities and talents (SHL 2011). One of their main methods of assessment is role-playing to test their customer service skills or their sense of judgment as they are asked to also help customers pick out an outfit taking their budget into account. M&S unlike other players in the industry choose to give the results of their assessment and job offer to successful candidates almost immediately i.e. on the day of the interview. (SHL 2011) Successful people are then taken through a three-day job induction. (M&S 2010)

Key issue or problem identified at this stage was the fact that M&S overly emphasized their assessment on role-plays which does not thoroughly reflect their capabilities and is mainly based on perception than depth. Individualism supports the idea that employees should be assessed based on capabilities rather than characteristics such as disability, race, gender and behaviour (Harrisr and Foster 2010). M&S also uses the same assessment tools for all candidates. Another key issue was that the immediate hiring after interviews did not allow equal opportunities for candidates and M&S most likely missed out on more talented people by doing so.

4.3) Employee attraction and Retention strategies – Employer branding

One main strategy to adopt as an employer to attract and retain employees is by building a good employer brand. Employer branding is the image of your organization (Minchington 2011). The reputation it holds in the eyes of potential recruits and employees. If employees view their work environment as good they are unlikely to go elsewhere. Employee branding also helps to attract new recruits externally. An employer brand is intangible and indirectly created through the reputation they have as an employer (CIPD, 2009). These strategies if adopted will fall in line with strategy to promote and maintain the perceived talent within the organization.

4.4) Performance Management – Motivation

Having acquired talent or retained the potential talent, most organizations have learnt the importance of follow up. It is expected that the positions, which they are placed give adequate challenge to the individual to develop their skills. The management is also expected to give employees opportunities of expression in order to enable talent engagement, which is part of the talent development. The organization’s potential is also expected to be identified, and nurtured as best as possible while making the most of the talent possessed (Armstrong 2010).

The need for constant change in management due to changing trends in the market scene prompts part of the acquired and retained talent to be maintained for future positions in the leadership of the organization (Kotter 2012). Most organizations like M&S have recognized this and effectively put such measure in place. However, some organizations fail due to the need to maintain cultures in leadership, like those led by family members. M&S keep their employees motivated by offering a wide range of benefits to their employees by creating a good work environment for them. This helps to increase overall performance and reduce employee turnover.

Some of the benefits include their efforts to try to keep wages competitive with other players in the industry by constantly checking to ensure that they are not underpaying their employees (M&S 2012). They also make conscious efforts to have yearly pay reviews and individual performance based rewards.(M&S 2012) They also offer 20% discounts in all their stores for employees and one of their family members (M&S 2012). Pension plan is offered for all employees as well as annual bonuses based on team or company performance. Employees are also given the opportunity to buy company shares at a discounted rate of 20 % (M&S 2012).

5.0) Recommendations

The collection of information in the resourcing stage was a key issue as there was no way to confirm legitimacy of information submitted for admission which could give the company the wrong impression of candidates for assessment. Recommendation for this would be to adopt the use of information verification services or follow-ups for all information submitted. They could use the services of Employment Profile and Automatic Data Processing. Inc. to conduct information verification checks. Background checks and information verification help to enhance security, reduce employee misdemeanour reduce turnover rates. (Julie Newman 2009).

Another problem which may arise with recruitment and selection is with candidates getting a quick response after their assessment this may mean that individuals who have their interviews later than others may be disadvantaged as all the roles may be filled before a later candidates gets chance to be interview. It should be stressed upon that M&S should make it clear to candidates applying the post the deadline for the position so they all have chance to be seen. M&S when selecting the right candidate should review all candidates so that later candidates are not disadvantaged on a first come first serve basis and the organization does not miss out on the best talents.

Another thing that has failed M&S is the audit of talent conducted formally within the organization. It is recommended that the internal audit be done continuously to observe consistent trends in employees for positive talent identification (Shukla 2009, pp. 15). This will result in a more reliable audit than if done in a specific time.

5.1) Immediate Recommendations

Among the identified recommendations, there are those that are most urgent for M&S. Among them is the need to keep their employees motivated while treating them fairly and creating a good work environment. This is because it is urgent that the company avoids the looming rate of turnover, as this will affect productivity. It is proven that a high turnover rates cost are not cost beneficial and in some cases can make a difference in staying or going out of business. (Memmott and Growers 2012).

Methods of assessment other than the role-play should be taken up to avoid disadvantage to some candidates. Interviews, aptitude tests and work experience are an option. Hiring candidates with work experience helps to pool in information and expertise from other organizations in the industry.

Also, M&S should consider screening all job applicants over time before offering job positions to candidates in order to ensure that they do not miss out on more talented individuals who have applied later in the process.

6.0) Conclusion

The adoption of the talent management strategies has been taken up, but many organizations fail to seal the loopholes created by the implementation. The strategy therefore fails to be fully effective, as may have been the case for M&S despite the advantages of reducing time wastage and costs. Change in the formulation of strategies and their implementation will be necessary if adequate achievement is to be realized. Strategies are only effective, depending on the manner of execution and willingness of the company to adjust to suit the needs for its success. M&S needs to focus more on its reducing loopholes in its sourcing and recruitment processes taking into account the key issues raise and the recommendations given above.

7.0) References

Alexander, J & Hordes, M. 2003.S-Business: Reinventing the Services Organization. New York: Select Books.

Armstrong, M. 2006. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. London: Kogan Page.

Armstrong, M. 2010. Armstrong’s Essential Human Resource Management Practice: A Guide to People Management. London: Kogan Page.

Edmund Heery & Mike Noon. 2001. Dictionary of Human Resource management

Gold, J., Thorpe, R & Mumford,.A. 2010Gower Handbook of Leadership and Management Development. Burlington: Gower Publishing .2010.

Julie Newman 2009. Article. The Importance of Pre-employment Background Checks (Online). http://www.articlesbase.com/recruitment-articles/the-importance-of-preemployment-background-checks-716350.html (Accessed 25 November 2012)

Kotter 2012, Change leadership. (online) http://www.kotterinternational.com/ourprinciples/change-leadership (accessed 23 November 2012)

Memmott & Growers 2012. Washington tree fruit postharvest conference (0nline). http://postharvest.tfrec.wsu.edu/PC2002G.pdf (Accessed 25 November 2012)

Lawler, E. 2006.Talent: Making People your Competitive Advantage. San Francisco: John Wiley & sons.

Harrisr & Foster, (2010),”Aligning talent management with approaches to equality and diversity: Challenges for UK public sector managers”, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, Vol. 29 Iss: 5pp. 422 – 435

M&S 2012. Careers. (online) http://corporate.marksandspencer.com/mscareers (accessed 20 November 2012)

SHL 2012. M&S case study. Marks& Spencer innovates to get the right people and get them fast (online) http://www.shl.com/uk/results/client-results/ (accessed 19 November 2012)

Shukla, R.2009. Talent Management: the Process of Developing and Integrating Skilled Workers. New Delhi: Global India Publications.

Tandem HR 2010. The Importance of Background Checks (Online) http://www.tandemhr.com/userfiles/file/The%20Importance%20of%20Background%20Checks.pdf (Accessed 25 November 2012)